The highest-paid musicians in the world have been reported annually by ''

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'' since at least 1987. For measurement, the magazine used pretax earnings—before deducting fees for agents,

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. Most of the lists were estimated within a June-to-June scoring period, except for 1999, 2021, and 2022 when a

calendar year A calendar year begins on the New Year's Day of the given calendar system and ends on the day before the following New Year's Day, and thus consists of a whole number of days. The Gregorian calendar year, which is in use as civil calendar in ...

period was used instead. U2 became the annual highest-paid musician five times, more than any other act. They were also the highest-paid music group in a record eight different years.

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Michael Jackson, one of the most culturally significan ...

became the first musician to earn over $100 million in a year (1989), and has become the highest-paid male soloist a record seven times.

Dr. Dre Andre Romell Young (born February 18, 1965), known professionally as Dr. Dre, is an American rapper, record producer, record executive, and actor. He is the founder and CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and Beats Electronics, and co-founder of ...

currently holds the record for the highest annual earnings for a musician, collecting $620 million in 2014, mainly through the sales of his headphone-manufacturing company,

Beats Electronics Beats Electronics, LLC (also known as Beats by Dr. Dre, Beats by Dre or simply Beats) is an American consumer audio products manufacturer headquartered in Culver City, California. The company was founded in 2006 by the music producer Dr. Dre and ...

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone ( ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. Referred to as the "Queen of Pop", she has been recognized for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, ...

is the first woman in music to earn $100 million for a year (2009) and has become the highest-paid female musician a record 11 times.

Taylor Swift Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter. Known for her autobiographical songwriting, artistic versatility, and Cultural impact of Taylor Swift, cultural impact, Swift is one of the Best selling artists, w ...

remains the female musician with the highest official annual earnings ever with $185 million in 2019, breaking the previous record set by herself in 2016 with $170 million.